Cuba, the forbidden fruit of countries, is famous for cigars, colonial architecture, Communism, and 1950’s cars still careening thru the streets.

We hear it’s a great place to visit with its lush unspoiled terrain and friendly towns but for most Americans, it’s off limits. Unless you have a general or specific license, you may be in violation of the US Travel Ban to Cuba. To get a license, you need to prove you're a govenment official traveling on official business, a journalist, on a religious or humanitarian mission, a realtive of a Cuban citizen, an athlete or doing research (map research doesn't apply, we checked). Even these requirements have strict guidlines. It's not the traveling that's the problem, it's spending US dolIars that will get you in trouble. The Department of Treasury can impose fines up to $55,000 under the Trading with the Enemy Act. Americans may not be able to legally travel to Cuba, but it’s so lovely and relatively undeveloped that it’s the number one warm weather destination for Canadians. Europeans also arrive by the planeful to take advantage of the relaxed atmosphere, inexpensive prices and, frankly, the lack of Americans.

So how did the STREETWISE® Cuba Map come about? This is the only map that was not physically researched by our in-house team. In fact, we out-sourced the work to a British cartographic firm that, assured by separate fact checkers from Canada, did an accurate job of drawing the road network of Cuba found on the map front and preparing the detailed expanded inset maps of Havana, Varadero, and Playas del Este, which are located on the map backside. The Cuba map is complete with index for hotels, sites, parks and streets.

We hope to one day visit Cuba when the travel ban is lifted. Until then we study the Cuba map and plan our itinerary.

Our pocket size map of Cuba is also laminated for durability and accordion folding for effortless use. The STREETWISE® Cuba map is one of several detailed and easy-to-read country road maps published by STREETWISE®. Buy your STREETWISE® Cuba map today and you too can navigate Cuba like a native. For a larger selection of our detailed travel maps simply type STREETWISE MAPS into the Amazon search bar.

"Sinopsis" puede pertenecer a otra edición de este libro.

About the Author:

STREETWISE® is the first map to be designed with modern graphics and is the originator of the laminated, accordion-fold map format. We’ve set the standard that every map company has imitated but never duplicated. Our mission is to make you feel comfortable, to make you feel safe in a place where you’ve never been before and to enable you to experience a familiar place more fully.

The company was founded in 1984 by Michael Brown, who had been in international publishing for many years, setting up subsidiaries for textbook publishers. In the 1970’s, Brown traveled extensively throughout Africa, India, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Brown would take a large paper map, cut out the city center, folded it up and slip it into his pocket, thus preventing him from looking like a tourist in areas where discretion is the better part of travel. This was his tool for surviving.

After many years on the road, Brown settled back in New York and decided to start his own business, based on the adaptations he had made to maps in his travels. His goal was to give someone the ability to navigate easily in unfamiliar terrain.

He started with a new map format: the accordion fold. Such a simple idea, but at the time it was revolutionary. No more struggling to fold an awkward, oversized paper map. This new format would enable the user to blend in like a native, instead of stick out like a tourist. Brown then added lamination to ensure that the map would be a lasting tool.

More important than the format was the design of the map itself. It had to be a map that not only succeeded above and beyond any map he had used, but was esthetically appealing as well. The look of it had to be as striking as the functionality. Color was introduced in a way that was never seen before in a map - vivid purple for water, soothing gray for the background of street grids, gold to highlight elements of the map. Clarity, conciseness and convenience in a very stylish package.

Building the business was a 24 hour job. Brown sold the maps during the day, zipping around Manhattan making deliveries on his Harley Davidson. At night he packed the orders and did the design work. More titles were added, each title requiring months of research and design.

Today, STREETWISE® produces over 130 titles for major destinations, regions and countries throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Europe, the United Kingdom and Asia. We have grown from the back of a motorcycle to selling millions of maps around the world.

Yet each title is still painstakingly researched and updated. STREETWISE® is one of the only, if not THE only map company that conducts research by walking or driving an area to ensure accuracy. After all, what good is the map if what you hold in your hands doesn’t match what you see on the street sign? This lengthy fact checking results in superior accuracy; in effect, we’ve done the work, now you have the adventure.

In the end, it’s not about the map, it’s about getting out and finding your own authentic experience wherever you go. It’s about being in a city or a region and discovering things that you never thought you would find. You can do this if you have confidence and you have confidence if you have a great map. STREETWISE® is the great map that you need.